Winner Takes All
by rchcc122
Summary: Tsuna's excited for what seems to be a relatively normal day at the park: A picnic, friends, Kyoko, just normal. But when a baseball team starts practicing nearby, Yamamoto can't help but ask to play! What does Reborn have planned this time? -On Hiatus-
1. A Relaxing Day

The bright light of the sun shone through the curtains as a sleepy-headed fifteen-year-old future-mafia-boss cracked open his eyes.

It was a Saturday, but the boy groaned in non-appreciative anticipation for the day before him. He pulled himself up into a sitting position, hunched over as he yawned once more, but something felt odd. There was a silence in the room- no babies crying, no explosions, just that small, steady ring in the air of pure silence.

"Ciaossu," the familiar voice broke the air. But it wasn't- as it so often was- a disruptive break. Tsuna looked down at the baby, his body rigid with suspicion but he didn't take any other action than a simple response.

"Good morning, Reborn."

"Are you ready to go?" Reborn blinked, looking at the boy expectantly.

"I just woke up!" Tsuna's eyes went wide before he calmed down once more. Of course. He should have known the silence was too good to be true. He slipped out of bed, going to his closet, "Where are we going to train today?" He asked, so used to the odd and constant training exercises he was put to that he would save the freaking out until after he knew the details.

"We aren't going to train today," Reborn replied, Tsuna stopped moving, turning his head towards the baby- confused. "We're going on a picnic at the park; Haru and Kyoko were both kind enough to make lunch."

Tsuna looked back to his closet as he took off his pajama top and replaced it with a casual t-shirt, his mind trying to process the information. Kyoko had made him lunch? He smiled to himself, that would be delicious- he was sure!

"And they're coming to your room right now," Reborn added on as a simple afterthought. Tsuna looked down at this hands- he was currently in the process of changing his pants. He had been so caught up in thoughts that not only had he not registered that Reborn was still in the room, but the new news that Kyoko was coming to his room sent him into a panic.

"Get out! Turn around! Let me change!" He frantically begged the baby. He heard footsteps coming up the stairs and voices. "Please Reborn!"

But this time he noticed something. Reborn had a small bubble coming from him. He was asleep. _That's too creepy, _Tsuna shuddered, but the footsteps were coming even closer. His body went into full on panic mode as he rushed to change into normal clothes, falling over himself as he did so.

Right as he had pulled his pants up, zipping them completely he heard a knock on the door as the bubble from Reborn popped. He opened his eyes, smiling his familiar small, often suspicious smile. Tsuna sat nonchalantly on his bed, "Come in," he said.

The door opened, and standing in the doorway was Kyoko. Tsuna smiled to himself, she was carrying a small picnic basket, her hair looking soft, smooth, full of shine as it normally did… _she's so cute! _

"Tsuna, are you ready to go?" She asked, her soft voice like bells to the young hormonal boy. He nodded, unable to find his own voice. But Kyoko didn't seem to notice- and a simple nod of his head sufficed. She smiled once more, "Then come on, let's go! Everyone's waiting!"

She turned, carrying the picnic basket along with her as Reborn followed, leaving Tsuna. A moment or so passed before the boy snapped out of his crush-induced stupor before he realized that if he delayed any longer, they could- and most probably would- leave without him.

He quickly put his shoes on, tying them and thankful that despite the slightly stressful morning- today would be nice, easy, and relaxing. Right?

As the boy closed the door to his bedroom, his mind replayed the scene from just that morning. Kyoko, cute, beautiful Kyoko in his room. Her words repeating in his head- just for the sound of her soft voice. "_Then come on, let's go! Everyone's waiting!"_

He sighed with a soft smile- but before he took one more step a concern hit him- almost instantly shattering his wonderful image of a relaxing, quiet picnic. Who was 'everyone'?

* * *

Earlier that morning, another young boy was awaking in his bed. Only this time, the boy had a bit more energy and reason for waking up. He wasn't used to the same constant threat of explosions. He wasn't used to babies running around his house, nor had he any inkling about anything involving the mafia.

What he did know, however, was the familiar feel of a baseball in his hand. The set up for a curveball, a slider, a fastball, the thrill of pitching a strike, the torture of a hit, and the delicious taste of a homemade onigiri after a long practice.

Yes, their practices were lengthy and demanding, but Mihashi didn't mind at all. He had waited his entire middle school career- hoping every day that he would get this sort of chance. This chance to be a part of a team. A baseball team.

Sure he had to wait until high school, and he had to go through quite a bit just to prove himself as the pitcher (In his mind of course, the others seemed to be just fine with letting him pitch) and now he could smile every day, knowing that everyone on the Nishiura baseball team counted on him as their ace.

He went over to his closet- taking out the familiar white practice jersey along with the matching white pants. He pulled up his socks to just below his knees, repeating with the opposite leg- the final touches being the worn cleats he had been using all season and more.

Mihashi Ren stood up, adjusting his clothes last minute before grabbing his faithful glove and starting down the stairs. However, before he could descend his cell phone began to buzz. He paused a moment, looking at the screen.

A message from Abe. A message from his catcher. His hands immediately began to shake, barely able to press the correct button to open the note.

_The rugby team needs the field. We're practicing in the park today instead. _

_-Abe_

Letting out an audible sigh of relief, Mihashi put the phone back in his pocket as he continued down the stairs- his cleats as easy to move around in as his normal shoes. His mother had left that morning to go to the store, and so Mihashi was alone as he grabbed something small for breakfast, heading out and onto his bike- peddling towards the park.

* * *

A/N: Okay, so this is sort of my first 'seriousish' fanfiction- or at least series that I have planned out. It's a crossover my friends and I came up with while reading, and we all found the idea to be fun. So, yeah, thanks for reading! Sorry for any typos!


	2. The Set Up

Thank you for the encouragement to continue!

Disclaimer: (Forgot this in the first chapter ^^;) I don't own either of these series! But they're both epic. So I wish I did.

* * *

Well, it just so happened that the 'everyone' Tsuna feared so greatly was really not too much to worry about… hopefully. His eyes scanned the group walking towards the park- to his left was Gokudera, to his right Yamamoto- both seeming to be having the same discussion but with different mindsets. Gokudera seemed angry, furious beyond all reason- and Yamamoto appeared to find the discussion rather… humorous.

Lambo and Yipin were out in front, Lambo happily in his own world and Yipin near Haru, both content at least for the moment.

Tsuna sighed, looking down as he walked before feeling a comforting hand on his shoulder. He looked up and slightly behind him, into the warm, comforting face of Dino. He knew better than anyone what Tsuna was going through, and even though his being there was more of a surprise than anything, it was a welcomed surprise.

"Tsuna," Tsuna was snapped out of his thoughts, his head turning towards its source. The voice was soft, smooth, the voice he loved most. He smiled at Kyoko- giving her his full attention, "Ryohei's going to be there as well. He just texted me saying that he saved us a nice spot in the shade."

Tsuna's breath caught before he sighed. Okay. So Ryohei will be there as well. Not a problem. Not a problem at all. He would just go about his business as usual and make sure that nothing chaotic happened. After all… what's the worst that could happen?

"How far are we from the park, Tsuna?"

"Not too far, just a few more minutes until we get there- Futa? What are you doing here?" He turned, looking at the young boy. Okay. So this group… this group was getting larger, and a larger group meant less chance for any ounce of normalcy.

"I wanted to go to the picnic too," he said simply, looking up at him, "This park is number three on best parks in Japan for a picnic."

"Well, it's a good thing we're going to a place with such a high ranking, huh?" he smiled, feeling his body calm down. Okay. A normal motive. That was good.

The group followed the path until it turned once more. In front of them expanded a blanket of green grass. They didn't seem to be the only people wanting to go for a picnic today- families were sitting together, eating, smiling, laughing.

Tsuna smiled to himself. So today wasn't going to be a disaster, was it? He searched the park with his eyes before he saw a familiar face sitting in the shade of a large tree. It was a place not far from the other families, but with a sense of privacy on its own. The main separating factor being a baseball field that stood there, unused.

He wasn't the first to notice Ryohei, but he wasn't the last. The group cut across the grass and field until they reached him, "Kyoko, Tsuna, everyone," he acknowledged them, standing- his arms puffed back, his chest strong, a gleam in his eyes, "This picnic will be TO THE EXTREME!"

* * *

Maria Momoe was the first to arrive at the baseball field, claiming her team's practice space. She set the balls down next to the dugout they would be using, the manager bringing a large water jug for the team to share.

The field wasn't the prettiest they had played on, but that didn't matter. She crossed her arms under her chest, unintentionally perking the girls up. But she didn't seem to care about that either. She had more than proven herself to the team, and to anyone else who dared cross her.

"Hello, Coach," the deep, almost monotone voice broke the silence. Momoe turned, her long braids whipping behind her.

"Good morning, Abe."

"What drills are we running today?"

"Some situation drills, to get our movements faster. I want to work with Nishihiro as well, to make sure he's ready in case we need him," she answered. Over the course of the next few minutes, the team began trickling in.

Hanai was next to arrive, asking the same question. But Momoe didn't mind replying the same way. After all, the captain of the team should know the practice schedule.

After a few more minutes passed, it appeared that everyone had arrived. But just to make sure, Momoe counted the heads of her team members. _One… two… three… four… five- wait a minute, where's Mihashi and Tajima?_

She frowned, she didn't see them in the crowd, "Abe, did you tell Mihashi where we're practicing?"

Abe nodded, "Yeah, I sent him a text."

"And you, Hanai, did you tell Tajima?"

Hanai nodded as well, "I called him."

Momoe's face darkened as she grabbed a bat, starting to gently, yet firmly hit it against the palm of her hand, "Then they have no excuse."

The rest of the team gulped. The coach was definitely a bit frightening when she was angry like this.

"Oh! I see them!" Izumi pointed towards the shade of a tree. Tajima was caught up talking with a tall, dark-haired boy, Mihashi tugging on his arm frantically. Mihashi looked towards the field, his eyes meeting those of his teammates- and more importantly, the coach herself. He seemed to freak out suddenly and began tugging on Tajima even further.

_He knows he's in trouble, _Hanai sweatdropped. The coach still letting the bat drop into her hand before repeating the motion.

"Coach! Coach!" Tajima ran towards the field, a very flustered Mihashi following, "Coach! Can we have a scrimmage for practice today?"

"A scrimmage?" Izumi tilted his head.

"With who?" Sakaeguchi continued.

"Those guys sitting over there with the picnic! The tall guy plays baseball at his school, and they have enough players for a team of their own! Can we play them?"

The coach seemed to ponder this before a grin appeared on her face. She put the bat down, against the chain link fence behind her. "What better way to train for situations than a scrimmage? Tell them to come on over. We'll play them!"

She put her hands on her hips in satisfaction as she saw him run back. This couldn't have happened better if she had planned it herself.

"Coach Momoe."

"Yes?" Momoe turned to see who was talking, but she didn't see anyone at eye-level so she had to look down, "Who are you?"

"I'm Reborn. Manager of the Vongola baseball team."

* * *

A/N: Sorry for any mistakes or anything! I know it's not that good T_T It's late, I'm tired XDD But yeah, hope you all like it!


	3. Who's on First?

StarFixation- thank you so much for your enthusiasm! It's super encouraging =03

TenchiSaWaDa- Thanks for the motivation and encouragement!

Disclaimer: Nope... still not mine. Either of them.

* * *

"Guys! Our coach said a scrimmage will be great!" Tajima called, running towards his new friends. He stopped right before them, smiling brightly. "And if you don't have gloves with you… we have extras and you can use ours while we're batting!"

"Alright!" Yamamoto's smile grew as well. He looked to the fellow baseball player, "Tell the coach we'll be right over. We just need to find out who's playing on our side."

"Okay! I can't wait to play you. We're going to win though!" Tajima laughed as he turned, running off and back to his team.

"That guy has too much energy," Gokudera crossed his arms, leaning against the tree giving them shade.

"I like him! He's super extreme!" Ryohei jumped in as he grinned- watching the other boy run back.

Tsuna was looking down this whole time, lost in his own world as he tried to regain his ease. Okay. So it was just a baseball game. Baseball games were perfectly normal and accepted in society. Nothing weird, odd, or life-threatening about that, right? He sighed once more before looking at the group- but mostly Yamamoto, "Um, so what do we have to do for a baseball team?"

"Well, we need to give everyone a position on the field. What does everyone feel comfortable playing?" Yamamoto looked to the group. A silence filled the air, short at first, but it gradually got longer, and longer, and longer… "What positions to people know?"

"I know-" Tsuna was going to say 'pitcher' but before he could get the word out of his mouth, there was the small, scratchy sound of someone clearing their throat. Tsuna looked down, following the gaze of all the other at the picnic to see Reborn, dressed in a blue baseball uniform- over the front it said 'Vongola' and on his blue hat he had a white embroidered 'V.'

Reborn was holding a clipboard, looking down at it before looking back to the team, "I have the positions for everyone. Now listen up." He cleared his throat again, "Second base, Dino, short stop, Haru," both of them raised their head in surprise. Neither knowing they were going to be playing- but before either of them could say anything, Reborn was moving on.

"Third base, Yamamoto," Tsuna glanced over towards his friend, who seemed to be smiling ear to ear. He seemed to be having so much fun just learning their positions, "Left field, Lambo," Lambo blinked, looking up- in his hand a cookie that Kyoko had given him.

"Lambo will be the best baseball player here!" He declared, but Reborn- as well as everyone else for that matter- ignored him.

"Center field, Futa," Futa blinked, "Right field, Gokudera."

"Hey! Why am I so far away?" Gokudera snapped to attention at the discovery. He was going to be far from the Tenth! He paused a moment when he realized something: Reborn hadn't said who the first baseman, pitcher, or catcher would be.

"Chrome will play first base," Reborn responded to the thought- though whether it was intentional or not would still be up for debate.

"Chrome? She's not here though," Tsuna said as he scanned the area for the blue-haired girl, but he didn't see her anywhere.

"She will be here in time for the game," Reborn replied, "I sent her a note last night."

Tsuna froze. Note? Last night? About the game? Did that mean that this was….

"Pitcher, Tsuna."

"Pitcher? How am I supposed to know how to pitch?"

"_Nice pitching!"_ as if he wasn't already freaking out enough, a chorused cry from the true baseball team could be heard where they stood. He looked at their pitcher, he seemed so nervous… maybe he didn't have anything to worry about?

But then the catcher threw back the baseball, and as soon as the pitcher had it in his hand, the trembling boy he had seen vanished, and who replaced him was a strong, stoic pitcher. Tsuna's eyes were wide as he saw the big wind up and the pitch to the catcher. _Thap! _

It went so… fast. His eyes were wide. How was he supposed to hit that? Much less pitch to them!

"Tsuna, you'll pitch well. I know it," Tsuna turned to the baby with confusion. "I know because of this," the baby took a long, cylinder tube. It was just over halfway full, and a small red ball rested against the surface, "Every time you allow a walk, this ball will sink. If the ball sinks to the bottom, it will trigger a bomb that will blow up the pitcher's mound."

The silence that followed from Tsuna rivaled all others as he looked at the baby with disbelief before exclaiming, "What? NO! You can't do that!"

"Also, the losing team dies," Reborn added as if it were an afterthought, telling the rest of the players- almost all understood it as the truth, and became even more determined, but Tsuna remained frozen.

"What the hell are you doing Reborn? Are you crazy?"

"Who's going to be catcher?" Yamamoto asked, seemingly undisturbed by the declaration of the possible death of one of the teams. Tsuna sweatdropped, the boy didn't even seem to realize this wasn't a game.

Tsuna paused his freak-out to think about the question. It was a good one, of course, after all- how could they have a pitcher without a catcher? He looked around, seeing the other possible candidates for catcher- the only actual competitor for the spot seemed to be Ryohei actually.

"Ryohei-" Tsuna sighed, okay, so Ryohei was the catcher. It could have been much, much worse- "You will be in charge of cheers."

Another silence through the area as they looked to Ryohei who appeared to be familiarizing himself with the role, letting the news sink in. He looked up and smiled, "My cheering will be TO THE EXTREME!"

"Kyoko," No. No, Kyoko couldn't be the catcher… "You will be the manager. Why don't you bring this copy of the roster," Reborn held out a sheet of paper, keeping the catcher's name hidden, "to the other team's manager? Her name is Shinoka," he said with a smile.

"Okay Reborn," Kyoko smiled, taking the sheet and heading towards the other team. There was still a silence before Reborn looked at Tsuna.

"Our catcher is…."

* * *

A/N: Haha, sorry for any mistakes/errors, feel free to abuse me via pm ^^


	4. Two, Four, Six, Eight

Thanks to everyone for the encouragement and the reviews =03

Disclaimer: I don't own either series... sadly.

* * *

"Our catcher is…." There was a silence. A dramatic pause as Reborn looked back to the sheet. He returned his gaze to the newly formed baseball team, but still didn't say anything.

"Who's the catcher?" Tsuna asked again. He was growing impatient, but he knew things would be bad if he lost his temper with the baby, not that he could ever really lose his temper with Reborn, but right now he didn't want to risk doing something to get Reborn angry.

"You'll find out when he gets here." Reborn answered simply, putting down the clipboard. "Practice pitching with Yamamoto." He held out a baseball and a glove. "Ryohei, would you mind bringing the extra mitts the other team is offering over?"

Ryohei nodded firmly, "I will, and it will be TO THE EXTREME!" he cried. He stood up; making the most out of every bit of energy he had as he rushed to the field. He paused though, confused as soon as his foot hit the dirt. Who was the coach?

"Can I help you?" someone out of his peripheral vision asked.

"I was just looking for the coach," Ryohei turned- looking at the owner of the voice. She was tall. Very well endowed. And appeared to be very strong.

"Well, you found her." She answered with a grin.

Ryohei was silent for a moment, she was the coach? He blinked, that was new. A woman coach. But that was okay, because women were very strong! "I was informed you offered us some mitts!" in his usual, over-the-top enthusiasm he began speaking, "And our team would very much like to use them, to the extreme!"

Momoe put her hand on her hip, grinning at him, "I like your enthusiasm. The extra mitts are over there in that bag," she pointed towards them.

"Thank you very much, ma'am!" he bowed deeply to the woman before rushing towards the bag, gathering the straps, pulling it over his shoulder.

"Hey! Nishiura!" the practice on the field slowed down as a few of the players looked towards the newcomer, and Ryohei- being curious about it as well- followed the gaze. What he saw was a tall, blonde-haired young man smiling at the team from the other side of the gate, "Not practicing on the school field?"

"Hey, Hamada," the coach offered a small wave, "No, the rugby team needed the field. So we're practicing here. In fact, we've got a scrimmage starting soon if you want to stick around and cheer."

"Sure! I'll text the girls and ask them if they want to come over as well," the man smiled, taking up his phone as he pressed the simple buttons, sending the quick text. That's when he seemed to notice Ryohei, "has Coach Momoe wrangled in a new team member?"

"No! I am the cheerleader for the Vongola baseball team. Coach Momoe was kind enough to lend us mitts!"

"Cheerleader?" He tilted his head, a stifling a small laughter, but he would let the guy say what he wanted, "Well, what kinds of cheers do you have? Maybe we could help each other out." Not that he had any trouble with men being cheerleaders- after all, what was he? But he was having fun with this guy.

"Good ones!" he replied before putting the bag over his shoulder once more. He looked to the group, "I would love to stay, but I have to go and give these mitts to my team! Watch out Coach, because our team plays… TO THE EXTREME!" And with that, Ryohei turned- running back to his team.

"I like that kid," Momoe said once more, this time to Hamada, "He has a lot of energy." Her eyes went back to her team, watching as Mihashi pitched one more pitch. "Mihashi, be careful not to wear out your arm. I only want you to pitch three more before the game, okay? Tell me when you're done with them- I'll call over the Vongolas at that time."

Mihashi had jumped a little when he heard his name, he turned his head slowly, his body shaking before he nodded, "O-o-o-okay!"

There was a brief silence, Momoe going back to looking at her charts for her players before Hamada's phone started to buzz. He picked it up, reading the message. He looked to Momoe, "Hey, the girls want me to meet with them for a little before the game. Tell the team we'll be here before long to cheer."

"Will do," Momoe nodded. Not long after Hamada had made his exit, Mihashi started to make his way over. He looked to the coach.

"I-I-I've pitched t-t-three."

Momoe smiled, "Alright! Everybody in the dugout!" She looked towards Reborn and the others, calling out, "Hey Reborn! Are you guys ready?"

Reborn turned to Momoe, giving her a thumbs-up before he looked up to Tsuna and the team, "They're batting first." He said simply. He looked to Tsuna, "Your catcher is waiting for you over at home plate. Go get a few practice pitches in. Everyone else, take the field and begin throwing the ball." He ordered.

The team obeyed without question, and Tsuna- though worried about the losing team- was painfully curious and equally as worried about who his catcher was going to be. He looked down at the pitcher's mound in front of him. He never thought he would be stepping on one of these, and with such high stakes!

He took a deep breath, putting one foot on the dirt and then the next as he moved to the top. He looked out at the field behind him, everyone already in their positions, passing the ball back and forth- outfielder to outfielder, infielder to infielder.

"Are you going to pitch?" A cold, hard voice cut through his thoughts. Tsuna stiffened. He was his catcher? How did Reborn ever get him to agree to any of this?

Tsuna turned slowly, soon looking into the dark, narrowed eyes of his catcher. His grip on the ball got looser, how was he ever supposed to be able to pitch to him? He was so calm and collected… and not to mention frightening.

"What are you waiting for? Pitch." The voice wasn't loud, no, but that's what made it all the more intimidating. Tsuna took the ball in his hand, pulling it back.

Mihashi watched from the dugout. Their pitcher… looked to be as nervous as Mihashi had been when he first pitched to Abe. Mihashi glanced to his catcher next to him, trying to gauge his reaction to the other nervous pitcher.

_Thap! _"What the hell was that?" Abe raised his eyebrow. Mihashi turned his attention back to the field. The catcher was standing; his hand outstretched fully to the side- the ball in his ungloved hand. Abe blinked, the catcher's movements were so quick in response… but the pitcher wasn't completely comfortable. He side glanced to Mihashi. Mihashi was comfortable with him… but if Mihashi shook like that pitcher did, a strike would be a miracle- much less a strike _out_.

The catcher, however, seemed to not be thinking quite as in depth about the game as the other pitcher and catcher were. In fact, he looked even more peeved than before. He approached Tsuna, bending over just slightly so his lips were right beside Tsuna's ear, "Do that again, and I'll bite you to death."

There was a whistle cutting through the air, Reborn standing next to the dugout. The teacher sponsor, Shiga, taking place as the umpire behind the plate. Reborn smiled to the two teams, "Let's play ball!"

* * *

A/N: Sorry for the delay, I was coming back from a road trip. Sorry if it's bad ^^;


	5. The First Pitch

Disclaimer: I still don't own either series. But I will when I take over the world.

* * *

Tsuna's body was shaking violently as he looked towards his catcher, Hibari Kyouya glaring harshly at him. He waited as he saw the first batter come up- he couldn't exactly see what he looked like, nor could he see his number, but he knew he had to pitch.

Tsuna shut his eyes, trying to take a deep breath as he struggled to calm down. He managed just barely before opening his eyes again, staring at the dark-haired man, his catcher. He pulled his arm back, throwing it forward. The ball seemed to soar right on track… until it fell to the ground, bouncing across the plate.

"Ball!" There was a silence across the field, at first the eyes were on the pitcher, but as the boy shook and stared at the man before him, the eyes shifted to the catcher. The catcher silently took the ball before pulling his arm back and throwing it to the pitcher- hard.

The glove went up just in time to catch it before the ball smacked him square between the eyes, the tension on the field suddenly increasing ten-fold.

"How come I feel as if I'm in the middle of an argument between a married couple and I shouldn't be watching?"

"Tajima! Shh!"

"He can't hear me, we're in the dug-" his words fell as an ice-cold glare made its way towards the small boy. Tajima blinked, "Okay. Maybe he can hear me." He shifted a little bit behind Hanai.

"Don't use me as your shield!"

"But you're so much bigger than I am!"

"If you aren't quiet…" Hibari's voice was quiet, yet it carried as those in the dugout were silenced. He looked over towards them, a dangerous expression on his face before it turned much, much darker, "I'll have to bite you to death." He repeated his famed line before kneeling down behind home plate, holding the catcher's glove out. "Now pitch correctly."

Tsuna pulled back his arm once more, this time taking aim, taking a deep breath, working on getting his strength centered. He pitched the ball, closing his eyes as soon as he let go of the stitches.

There was another _thap_ sound, and he was sure he had gotten another ball. Instead, what he heard was the umpire calling, "_Strike!_"

Hibari threw the ball back, not offering any words of encouragement. But Tsuna didn't need them as much now, he smiled to himself, he had just gotten a strike on someone. He pulled his arm back once more. He would do it again!

He threw exactly the same way as he had thrown before; but this time the batter was ready and he stepped forward immediately pulling through as he hit the ball.

It was a line drive, travelling low and fast up the third-base line. Yamamoto's smile widened- he saw the play right before him. He got in front of the ball, catching it in his glove. He raised his spare hand, sticking one finger into the air, "One out!"

Meanwhile, behind him, Lambo was huddling. That ball… was coming towards him awful fast. And he was awfully small. He reached into his hair, taking out the ten-year-bazooka. This would help him! But before he got to actually using the ten-year-bazooka, he noticed a very pretty flower on the ground with a very pretty lady bug, so he knelt down, playing with his observations instead.

For the more important action at the time, Tsuna had gotten the ball back and was currently pitching to the second batter. He wasn't the best of course by a long shot, but he had managed to get the count to 2-2. He threw the ball a third time, resulting in the batter hitting the ball- this time a grounder to short-stop.

"It's Haru's!" Haru said as she put the glove on the ground, picking up the ball and throwing it towards first. The runner- Mizutani- had already managed to find himself safe on the base, however.

Chrome caught the ball flawlessly before passing it to the pitcher once more. Tsuna caught it, and tried to ignore the glare he was getting from the catcher. He looked away, back at the bases to try and calm himself down before he saw Mizutani start his lead-off. That made him nervous. He gulped, looking back towards Hibari.

This was his ninth pitch in a game ever. And it was either going to be a ball or a strike, he could only hope for the latter. He threw the ball forward, not using anywhere near the same tactics Mihashi would use. He didn't have any special kinds of pitches, nor did he even really know how to pitch, much less enough knowledge on how to set up signs with the catcher.

But he just tried his best, and the batter saw the hit he wanted. Izumi took a step forward, turning his body into the hit. But as soon as his bat connected, the ball didn't go out, or down, it went up.

_Oh no! _Izumi thought as he ran to first base anyway, it was right above the catcher. And, just as Izumi thought, all Kyouya had to do was open his glove and catch the ball.

"Two outs!" Yamamoto smiled, waving his hand.

"The Tenth can count, you bastard!" the angry voice from right field came. He glared at Yamamoto, "Don't put any more pressure on him! He's doing the best he could! No one wants to hear your voice!"

Of course, Yamamoto at this time had learned to simply tune out the disgruntled silver-haired man. So instead of replying to his comment about his voice, he simply commented, "Watch third!"

"There isn't a runner on second stupid! He's still on first!" There was a pause as Yamamoto nodded towards first base. Sure enough, Mizutani had made it to second. "Why didn't you kill him then stupid? Here! Let me handle this!" he reached into his vest.

Mizutani's eyes widened, what? Kill? What was this all about? He looked towards the other baseball player, Yamamoto, for a clue. Yamamoto laughed, "Ah, it's all just part of this mafia game they like to play. Don't worry about it."

Mizutani just nodded, not quite sure if he should believe that or not. He glanced at his team who seemed equally as confused and nervous as he did before he turned his attention back towards Gokudera. His hand was slipping out of his jacket, holding something, "I will blow you sky high!"

"NO! STOP!" Tsuna cried, just wanting all the nonsense to stop. Instead, he just got an increasingly awkward silence directed at him, "I mean, Gokudera, um, I need you to play your position well. Okay?"

"You've got it Tenth!" Gokudera saluted the tenth boss of the Vongola family before getting into ready position, apparently having forgotten about wanting to blow Mizutani sky-high.

"Hey! Pitcher!" Tsuna turned back to the batter, noticing his small body, black hair, and freckles. He held the bat in his hands, pulling it back- the movement all looked so natural… it looked like when Yamamoto played baseball. "I want one of those really fast ones you have! I want to hit it!"

_Great! Then we'll lose and all DIE, _his thoughts spiraled, but he shook his head, focusing again before smiling and nodding, "Alright…" he pulled back. Fast… fast… He pitched, but the ball went too high, Hibari needing to stand to catch it.

But Tajima didn't seem at all fazed, he hadn't said a word about it nor did he swing. Hibari threw the ball back to Tsuna, kneeling down once again. His glare never lighting up as he held his glove.

Tsuna pulled back his arm once more, pitching again. This time, the ball was way to the outside, and Hibari had to stretch his arm to get it.

"He stole third! You thief!" Haru pouted as she looked at Mizutani, who was now currently on, well, third base.

"Come on pitcher! I know you can do this! I just want a really fast one!"

"I'll bite you to death."

"Remember your training Tsuna."

"WHAT TRAINING?" was his outburst. Out of everything he could have said right then, out of everyone he could have just glared at for being difficult, he glared at the baby next to the Vongola team's dugout, "I can't pitch!"

"Yes you can. Now pitch." Reborn said from the third-base line, looking at Tsuna. "Remember…." He pointed towards the cylinder measure as it rested just inside the dugout.

"Reborn! You are INSANE!"

"Hey! I want to hit the ball!" Tajima cut through, lining up the bat before pulling it back and holding it tight. Tsuna tried shaking off the image of Reborn. He always made him so nervous. He pulled his arm back once more, closing his eyes again before opening them to pitch.

The ball flew from his fingertips, flying through the air. Tajima grinned. This was his ball. He hit it, following all the way through before taking off down the base path as the ball soared into deep left field.

A that point, Lambo was also deep in the outfield, playing with the lady bug and the flower he had picked. His back to the game, his glove strewn out somewhere between him and the infield. So, of course, it came to a complete surprise to him when a round chunk of the sky fell off and hit him in the head.

"YOU USELESS COW! SEND THE BALL BACK!"

But Lambo was too busy tearing up to hear, "gotta… stay…calm!" He saw the bazooka he hadn't put back in his hair yet, and held it to his forehead before pulling the trigger.

5-year-old Lambo vanished in the cloud of smoke, and as it cleared a much older teenager stood in his place.

"JUST PASS THE BALL!" Tajima was running past second, making good time as he ran quickly- Mizutani was already home.

The older man wasn't completely incompetent, unlike his baby self- at least when it came to just throwing a ball. He picked up the ball, relaying it in to Futa at center field, passing it to the third baseman, Yamamoto as Tajima rounded third. Yamamoto quickly threw the ball towards home, Hibari catching it and hitting the top of Tajima's foot as he slid into home.

"Out!" Called the umpire.

"Darn!" Tajima sighed as he stood up, wiping off the dirt. He looked to the outfield. The older man walking forward, glove casually behind him. But… he could have sworn a toddler was in the outfield. He went into the dugout to get his glove, looking to Mihashi, "Wasn't that cow guy smaller a minute ago?"

"I… I noticed… that too…." Mihashi said as he finished helping Abe into his catcher's gear. Abe too busy concentrating on what kind of batters they had to notice the change. But everyone on the other team… they all looked strange and… quirky for lack of a better word, but he shouldn't be nervous, he figured, he and Mihashi could strike out anyone.

"Let's get out there and show these guys what a _real _battery looks like," he said to Mihashi.

"O-o-okay!"

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A/N: College stuff is kinda attacking all at once right now. So sorry for any mistakes/errors/general crap that I post on accident ^^;


	6. Strike!

Disclaimer: Nope... still not mine.

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Mihashi stood on the pitcher's mound, glove on his hand, ball in the glove. Nothing felt more… more natural to the boy. Nothing in the world could compete with this feeling. It was akin to a tree feeling at home in the ground, no one was going to move it without a fight, and if it was removed it would leave the tree without a purpose. Without a life.

Okay. Maybe his thoughts _were _a bit drastic on this. And maybe this game didn't mean everything; after all, it was just a scrimmage. What was the worst that could happen? But he still had to fight with every ounce of his mortal being to be the ace. There were other pitchers lined up to take his place as the ace, they were better than him for sure… but he wasn't going to give up easily. If it was that easy to shake him, he would have given up the mound long ago.

The boy shook his head, getting his thoughts cleared before he pulled the ball back, pitching straight down the middle for a small warm up. It landed cleanly in Abe's mitt, unlike the previous pitcher's pitches. Mihashi smiled softly to himself, as much as he hated being the kind of person to find reassurance in other's misery, he was so happy he felt so much more comfortable than the other had.

"Batter up!" Mihashi's eyes turned toward the opponent's dugout, watching for the first batter as their umpire assumed position behind home plate. But as soon as he saw the batter go to the left side of the plate, his body froze. He looked into the cold, cruel-seeming eyes of the person he was supposed to be pitching to. The catcher. The other pitcher's catcher.

Mihashi could immediately understand why the other pitcher was so nervous pitching to him. He just seemed so… so cold and cruel-hearted.

"Mihashi," a calm voice cut through the nerves. Mihashi turned towards the source of the voice, his catcher. Abe. Abe was talking to him. That's right; he didn't need to worry about what the batter looked like or who he was. Abe would tell him how to pitch and he'd pitch well and he'd strike him out like he struck out everyone else before him.

He looked for the signs, and once he got them he pulled back for the wind-up, pitching a curveball- low and outside.

Hibari didn't seem to change his expression at all as he stepped forward, swinging the bat through and hitting the ball without a second thought. The ball flew high above the Nishura infield, going deeper and deeper until- if it had been an enclosed field- it would have been a home run.

Mihashi's body started shaking furiously, his eyes widening in panic as he saw the man give him a pointed smirk before going off to first base, rounding them all easily before stepping on home. The score was tied. Mihashi had gotten hit.

Tsuna watched on the sideline, still not happy that Hibari batted first. He knew how intimidating the man was… and he knew that he would probably get a hit. Hibari had always been good at baseball in school, not like Yamamoto but he definitely had skills to use. He looked towards the other pitcher who appeared to be shaking. Tsuna could tell just from where he was- the pitcher wasn't looking good at all. His face had paled, his body shook violently, his eyes were down at the mound….

He was confused- why was such a great pitcher so nervous? Did he really think the others on their team would pose that much of a threat? But before he could come to any more conclusions he saw their catcher stand, heading towards the pitcher.

"Mihashi," the voice was softer, and helped Mihashi calm down just enough to look in the eyes of the speaker, "That was my fault. I underestimated our opponents. I'm sorry."

Mihashi stiffened as he shook his head furiously, "N-n-no! It wasn't your fault! It was my fault! You're a great catcher. I just couldn't throw it well enough…." Abe grabbed Mihashi's hand, testing their warmth, their ability to grip a ball, their level of shaking.

"Mihashi, listen to me, you're doing fine. Just pitch like regular. We can get these next guys out and we'll cut them off at one run. Then, next time we bat we'll get another run. We're going to win this, I promise you," he said, his voice going quieter as he spoke the encouraging words to his pitcher, "Are you okay now?"

"Y-y-y-yeah," he nodded, "T-t-t-thank you, Abe." Abe just gave him a smile and a nod before going back behind the plate, the next batter being Dino.

Tsuna gulped- Dino was another opponent that he really didn't think was fair putting so early in the batting line-up. He was probably super good at baseball… they would have another run and the other pitcher would go back to looking so miserable….

_Thud, _"Uh… strike…."

"Oh, right…" Tsuna whispered to himself as he looked to Dino, the man had swung, but lost his balance along the way and was now sprawled out on the plate. He groaned in pain before standing once more, getting ready to bat, "his subordinates aren't here…."

The next two strikes came incredibly easy, Dino falling backwards for one going towards the inside and tripping once more forward for the third. He stood up, rubbing his backside as he went back to the dugout, leaving both Abe and Mihashi not quite sure how to feel about the strike-out.

After all, on one hand it had been definitely a strike out, but on the other hand it had been such an easy strike out that Mihashi might as well had been practicing with his board back home. But Abe shook his head to clear it from the thoughts, they couldn't get too cocky, they still had to get two people out.

"You won't be able to strike me out!"

Mihashi jumped at the declaration. A girl took the plate, her brown hair pulled out of her face as she took her stance on the right side of home plate. "Oh? Is that a fact?" Abe replied.

The girl seemed shocked that the catcher replied rather than the pitcher, but she recovered quickly, nodding fiercely, "Yes! I have to win for Tsuna! He's saved my life before." She said firmly before looking back at Mihashi, "What the heck are you waiting for? Pitch already!"

Mihashi jumped again, not quite getting that the girl was partly giving him such a hard time to see his reactions. She had developed a minor crush on the boy over the quick course of the game, and now was her time to show off to him. She would hit the ball and get a home run and then comfort him afterwards….

"Strike one!" Haru blinked. She glared down at the catcher.

"I WASN'T READY!"

"You were positioned," he shrugged, throwing the ball back, "Nice pitching, Mihashi." He said before resuming the crouch. He held the glove in his hand, giving the signs again- a simple fastball down the middle. "You should be paying attention."

"Geeze," she grumbled as she got ready again, "Guys like you really get me angry! Can't you just wait?"

"Mihashi's the one you should be yelling at, he's the pitcher," shrugged Abe again.

"But he's too cute to yell at!"

"Strike two!"

Haru blinked again, the ball was in the catcher's mitt again. "I told you to pay attention."

He gave the signs once more as Haru huffed, getting her bat ready once more.

"Just whatever you do," he gave the sign, "don't blink."

"I won't," Haru replied as she got deeper into her stance

"Strike three! You're out!"

"WAIT! I blinked!"

"Heh, you're still out," Abe chuckled as he threw the ball back. Haru stomped her foot but went back to the dugout anyway. She made her way inside, sitting down on the bench and crossing her arms, huffing in anger at what had happened.

Mihashi was shaking; she had been yelling a lot… had he done something wrong? But Abe wasn't mad at him. So he couldn't have done anything wrong, right? The next batter came up to the plate, a young boy. He seemed to be the youngest other than the babies, but he was getting ready to bat as if he were the same age as everyone else.

That was Abe's indication that he didn't have to go easy on the kid just because he seemed to be a kid. So he set things up how he always did- starting with a low, inside ball.

_His favorite pitch to start with is low and inside, it's the first in the list…_ Futa thought as he saw the pitcher wind up. As soon as it was thrown he knew exactly where to hit- but the kid was still not as physically strong as Hibari. So even though the ball connected with the bat, it wasn't hit far at all. Instead, Futa ran quickly as the ball hit the ground, the grounder moving quickly towards Tajima.

Tajima didn't hesitate as he dropped down; fielding the ball before throwing it quickly to first base, but Futa was quicker- running through the base ensuring his safety. Oki caught the ball with ease before passing it to Mihashi, stopping all further plays for the time being.

Okay. So it wasn't as bad as the first hit. He had only gotten to first base. But why? Why had he been able to hit the ball so easily? Abe was scratching his head about the same thing, but they had little time to think as Yamamoto stepped up to the plate.

_Alright. Let's just end this quickly and get this guy out. We have to stop them at one run, _Abe thought as he gave signs for a high, inside curve ball. Mihashi nodded, pulling his arm back and pitching the chosen pitch. It flew accurately, hitting the glove just within the strike zone.

"Strike!"

Yamamoto grinned, this was great. This was absolutely perfect, he loved baseball, and now he got to bat against such a powerful pitcher. Things couldn't get any better for him as he pulled back the bat once more. Well, maybe except a hit. The next pitch he would hit perfectly.

The ball flew through the air once more, this time low and outside. Yamamoto swung, but missed as the ball landed gently into the mitt. _He's really good, _Yamamoto thought, his eyes turning more serious as he tried to think of how to actually hit the ball. He took a deep breath, pulling the bat back.

The next pitch, Abe decided was going to be a fastball- just to give a taste. Yamamoto pulled the bat back once more as the pitch was released, heading straight down the strike-zone.

Yamamoto pulled his body back before stepping forward, swinging through.

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A/N: Sorry for not posting sooner! I needed someone to look over it for me, so if it sucks, it's her fault now XD Haha, just kidding. But anyway, hope you enjoyed!


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